James Cook

James Cook was born in Martin Cleveland, Yorkshire on October 27, 1728 and died in Hawaii, on February 14, 1779 also known as Valentine's day. He was a British explorer, cartographer, writer and an astronomer who went on many journeys to the Pacific Ocean, the Antarctic, the Arctic, and around the world twice. He was a son of a farmer. He started sailing when he was 15. And when he was 18, he was still learning to be a sailor, and proved himself a good navigator.

James Cook's first journey was on August 26, 1768, until July 13, he observed the transit of Venus. Which is when the planet Venus made an eclipse with the sun and the earth. That also helped the scientists to calculate the distance from the earth to the sun.


James Cook's second journey was from 1772-1775. He also went to New Zealand and he and his crew fought the Maori. He also went to Antarctica.

James Cook's last journey was from 1776-1779. Cook arrived at cape town, South Africa, on October 18, 1776, and sailed to the Indian ocean (in early 1777). Captain James Cook was killed during a fight with islanders. The fight started by an argument over the theft of the boat. The ship returned to England without Captain James Cook on October 4, 1780.

He was the first ships captain to stop the disease scurvy. Not getting enough vitamins can cause serious diseases. Long time ago sailors on long sea journeys did not have fresh food. They suffered from a disease called scurvy. Their gums bled and their teeth fell out. They bruised easily. Many sailors died from scurvy. If you don't get enough vitamin C, it can cause scurvy. A doctor in the 1700's discovered that giving the sailors lime juice would stop scurvy. Citrus fruits like limes are full of vitamin C.